MURRIETA: Friends, family, community come together to support victims' families

NELSY RODRIGUEZ nrodriguez@californian.com

4f190a19a1a69.hires

4f0fcb82418da.image

4f190a195e69e.hires

4f111e1380bfc.image

Friends and family members gathered Thursday at We Are Murrieta,a benefit fundraiser at
Spelly's Bar & Grille,
to remember two recentvictims of violence.

Organized by the city and the restaurant owner, the event raised
money for the families of 18-year-old Saskia Burke of Murrieta and
36-year-old Sam Vanettes of Winchester.

The two were killed in separate incidents in Murrieta the week
before Christmas.

More than 150 people poured into the restaurant on Murrieta Hot
Springs Road, where one of the killings occurred, to support the
families through their respective tragedies.

Customers bought raffle tickets, bid in silent and live
auctions, and munched on Spelly's burgers and onion rings knowing
that a portion of the proceeds would benefit the families.

The live auction netted hefty cash donations for the two
families, with a pair of Lakers tickets going for $275, a golf
package at Bear Creek Golf Club netting $500 and a $200 gift
certificate to Anthony's Lounge and Ristorante going for $175.

"This was perfect," said Cindy Asher, a Murrieta woman whose
daughter had been a longtime friend of Vanettes.

"I haven't seen any of his family ---- I think it's still too
hard for them ---- but I know they know that he'll always be
remembered," Asher said. "This is how he would have
celebrated."

Vanettes was shot to death inside Spelly's on Dec. 21 after a
darts game between two other patrons grew heated, witnesses
said.

Riverside County sheriff's Deputy Dayle Long, 42, has been
charged with Vanettes' death. Long has pleaded not guilty.

The day before, Saskia Burke, a Murrieta Valley High School
senior, was fatally stabbed inside the Burke home. Her father and
boyfriend were also wounded.

William Gary Simpson, 19, has been charged with her death and
two counts of attempted murder. Simpson has pleaded not guilty to
the charges.

The incidents sent shock waves through the normally tranquil
city of 104,000. In response, city officials organized the benefit
as a way to help heal the wounds.

"There were years without any murders and then there were two
back-to-back?" said Rosemary Withem, who attended the benefit to
support the families. "It's just surprising."

While the Vanettes family did not attend the benefit, the Burke
family did. Flanked by family and friends, members of the Burke
family declined to speak with the media.

Those less intimately affected, however, said they were glad to
find a way to help the families, whom they considered two of their
own.

"I felt compelled to help," said Stephen Flynn, who said he
lives near the Burke residence on Milkwood Lane.

Flynn said he collected $200 worth of
JC Penney
giftcertificates and another $200 in gift certificates from
IE Bikes
, a Murrieta cycling shop, for theraffles.

"(The benefit) was the right thing to do," he said. "This is our
community. This is what Murrieta is."